Research shows that all great leaders have qualities and characteristics that ring true across the board.  Want to know how you stack up? Evaluate yourself against the following list…most importantly, be honest.

Traits of Exceptional Leaders

  1. Authenticity. All great leaders are dedicated to being themselves, rather than fitting the mold of what they (or others) believe a leader should look like.
  2. Integrity. Honesty is the foundation exceptional leadership rests upon.
  3. Responsibility. Great leaders take the lion’s share of the responsibility. When a decision goes awry, they never throw someone else under the bus.
  4. Inspires and Empowers Others. Being able to communicate why you are all going on the journey together is how you build a team.
  5. Self-awareness. Having self-awareness is vital for a leader to build out their team with people who balance their own strengths and weaknesses.
  6. Self-control. The ability to have poise under pressure takes exceptional leaders a long way.
  7. Courage. Successful leaders have developed mastery over their fears by training themselves not to regress under stress.
  8. Empathy. Empathy is the most extraordinary superpower. It is the one emotion that fosters an authentic connection between one human being and another.
  9. Humility.  Great leaders understand that no one is right 100% of the time, including themselves. They ask their team for their thoughts and demonstrate willingness to take their advice.

To strengthen your leadership skills, consider enrolling in one of these classes from Learning & Organizational Development:


References:
Forbes.com (2017, Oct. 9) Consumer Tech:  Five Traits All Successful Leaders Have In Common
Entrepreneur (2017, Oct. 19) Sherrie Campbell:  7 Character Traits Exceptional Leaders Have In Common
Inc. (2019, Nov. 26) Heidi Zak:  5 Qualities All Great Leaders Have In Common. Real leadership goes well beyond skills.